South Korean stocks inch higher on brisk Chinese factory data

** South Korean shares rose marginally on Monday, as brisk Chinese factory activity data tempered investors’ anxiety caused by a fresh round of Sino-U.S. tariffs. Both the Korean won and the benchmark bond yield rose.

** China’s factory activity unexpectedly expanded in August as production edged up, a private business survey showed, but orders remained weak and business confidence faltered as the Sino-U.S. trade war continued to escalate.

** The United States slapped 15% tariffs on a variety of Chinese goods on Sunday, including footwear, smart watches and flat-panel televisions, while China imposed new duties on U.S. crude, the latest escalation in a bruising trade war.

** The Seoul stock market’s main KOSPI ended up 1.40, points, or 0.07%, at 1,969.19.

** Shares of South Korea’s education companies surged after President Moon Jae-in told policymakers to review the current college entrance system. Shares of Mega Study closing up 24.2%, while NE Neungyule gained more than 10%. ** South Korea’s batterymakers slipped after local media reported that an energy storage system (ESS) facility in the country’s South Chungcheong Province caught fire. Shares of LG Chem and Samsung SDI lost 2.7% and 1.4%, respectively.

** Foreigners were net sellers of 131.5 billion won ($108.44 million) worth of shares on the main board.

** The won was quoted at 1,210.8 per dollar on the onshore settlement platform, 0.03% higher than its previous close at 1,211.2.

** In offshore trading, the won was quoted at 1,210.8 per U.S. dollar, down 0.1% from the previous day, while in non-deliverable forward trading its one-month contract was quoted at 1,208.9 per dollar.

** MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was down 0.26%, after U.S. stocks were mixed on Friday. Japanese stocks fell 0.41%.

** The KOSPI has fallen 3.52% so far this year, and lost 4.8% in the previous 30 trading sessions.

** The current price-to-earnings ratio is 12.10, the dividend yield is 1.28% and the market capitalisation is 1,242.04 trillion won.

** The trading volume during the session in the KOSPI index was 258.32 million shares and, of the total traded issues of 890, the number of advancing shares was 526.

** The won has lost 7.9% against the U.S dollar so far this year.

** In money and debt markets, September futures on three-year treasury bonds fell 0.15 points to 110.94, while the 3-month Certificate of Deposit rate was quoted at 1.49%.